Sore Feet

I get a lot of students asking me for yoga techniques to help with sore feet. It seems to be quite a common complaint.

My first suggestion is to tell them to begin to pay more attention to the shoes that they wear and to try going without shoes for longer periods of time.  There’s really no reason to wear shoes at all when one is home, is there?

Then I show them various massage & acupressure points to help relieve some of their pain.  The fun really starts when we stand up and begin to really notice just how we stand.  Where (on our feet) do we carry our weight?  Are we balanced on our feet?  Do they turn in? or out?  Then, we walk around the room and pay even closer attention.  What part of our foot touches the ground first when we walk?  What part comes next?  And so goes the inquiry………

Yesterday, I stumbled upon an article on the Internet and had a good giggle while reading it.  It seems I am not alone in my conclusions about shoes. Click on this picture to read more.

Self-Inquiry, Astrology, & Yoga

What happens when you integrate astrology into the yogic practice of self-observation without judgement?

Self-inquiry is a spiritual practice that directs our energy and our attention inward. It’s a particular form of self-discovery that encourages one to first recognize and then drop the social mask (also known as the persona, personality, or ascendant) and practice authenticity in every moment. (rather than productivity or some other external goal). In, The Path with Heart by Jack Kornfield, he describes a Buddhist practice of sitting quietly and repeatedly asking yourself, “Who am I”, over and over until you reach a point where something in the body/mind relaxes (?) and a subtle shift in consciousness happens. It’s one of those things that you have to experience for yourself and hard to describe.

Svadhyaya is one of the niyamas (from Patanjali’s 8 Limbs of Yoga) that encourages us to look at ourselves, clearly, without prejudice. It’s a challenging task and requires constant practice. Kripalu Yoga is the methodology that i practice. It brings the physical and energetic bodies into the mix by developing a heightened sense of awareness to sensations, breath, thought patterns, and spontaneous emotional expression.

Astrology attempts to find meaning in the natural order of the cosmos. Everything has it’s own time, it’s own season, and every minute that passes is unique. Astrologers observe both long term & short term trends and relate that information to the present moment. In addition, astrology also adds mythological, archetypal, & psychological dimensions that are extremely personal and relevant.

Natal Astrology looks at an individual (or oneself) thru a lens that has no prejudice. The natal horoscope does not see: gender, race, religion, economic status, socio/cultural differences, sexual orientation, political affiliation or any of the ways in which we categorize ourselves. What the natal chart does describe is our ‘energetic’ makeup and the timing of unfoldment. The ‘how’ is up to us. There are many ways to manifest the potential of our horoscope. It’s the energy pattern and the timing that are pre-determined. All else is free will. When approached with equanimity and non-judgement the natal horoscope becomes an impartial map of possibility with a built-in clock to help one connect to the present moment more intimately.

Yoga & Astrology have co-existed harmoniously in various cultures for eons. Each discipline recognizes the value & contribution of the other. Across the centuries, astrologers have continued to relate the movement of what is above to the movement of what lies below. Whereas, at the same time the yogi’s were discovering what lies without, also exists within. They both agree that here & now is important.

Yoga provides us with the tools to help us be with that moment in peaceful co-existence. Astrology helps us to understand the characteristics of the our particular ego-state and the nature of the obstacles that impede our path towards a higher consciousness. Yoga helps us to smooth out the obstacles, minimize the ego drives and approach life’s challenges in peace. Astrology provides us with the nature of the ever-changing present moment. Yoga practices train us to respond to the ever-changing moment with acceptance. Astrology, when properly understood, can advance us towards spiritual awakening. Yoga does the same.

As a Professional Kripalu Yoga Teacher & Astrologer it’s taken me most of my life to bring these two paths together in a way that goes beyond the mental field or intellect. After 30+ years of study and practice I have now reached a point where I can no longer keep them separate. My personal practice and the programs I offer always include the cosmic point of view in an attempt to teach the hermetic principal, As Above, So Below. For those who are ready for the practice of self-inquiry and seek to approach life multi-dimensionally, astrology & yoga together can be quite enlightening.

Om shanti, shanti, shantihi.

Patience is a waiting game……………

Today’s astrological transits show the moon moving thru the sign of Sagittarius with Venus squaring both Mars (2:07pm EDT) and Jupiter (9:36pm EDT). A fiery Sag moon does not bode well for practicing patience.

I don’t think today will be The Day.

Patience is a Saturnian experience and the fixed signs of Taurus, Scorpio, Leo & Aquarius probably have more of a natural affinity to remaining calm, stable, and unmoving……other aspects of being patient.

The dictionary shows the definition of patience as one who is patient. Patient is defined as:

1: bearing pains or trials calmly or without complaint

2: manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain

3: not hasty or impetuous

4: steadfast despite opposition, difficulty, or adversity

5 a: able or willing to bear

Waiting for a baby to be born might be the ultimate test of patience as well as a few other tests as well! Letting go of control and surrendering to the present moment are ways to bring a spiritual practice to the frustration and endless waiting period of childbirth.

Becoming a grandparent might be another Saturn-type of event since Saturn governs things like: elders, authority, practical wisdom ( as opposed to philosophical wisdom which falls more into the Jupiter category).

So, I’m looking at all my charts and doing what I can to contact my intuition to answer the eternal question: “When??”

I don’t think today’s the day. Time to be patient.

May all beings practice peaceful patience.

OMmmmmmmmmm.

Uh-oh! The Family’s Growing, Again !

Later………………….

I’m supposed to be packing right now and instead I’ve gotten caught up in this website where you re-create yourself as a South Park character. The choices are many, the decisions confuse me! Anyway, this is what I’ve come up with and you can click on the picture to go there yourself. Have fun!

I need to get myself into ‘travel mode’ now. I’ll probably be offline for a few days until I settle in in sunny southern California.

May all beings live in peace.

Om

Yipes! I’ve been tagged!

One of my favorite bloggers has ‘tagged’ me, which means that I am supposed to answer the 5 questions and then tag 5 others to do the same. Thanks Muse, (??).

These online ‘games’ are an interesting way for bloggers to get to know each other a little better. Not a bad idea actually…..there are some very interesting people out here in the blogosphere.

Today’s post are my responses to the “fluff five”…..hmmm, who picks these names? I, too, would never use the word fluff(y) to describe my blog or my self!

Nevertheless, here goes.

5 Things found in your bag. (I try to travel everywhere as light as possible, keeping clutter to a minimum…..so today I have…..

ipod

keys

loose change

mala beads

biz cards

5 Things found in your room (hmm, which room would that be? how about the one I’m in!……..I like muse’s room)

computer

the ever present cup of coffee

the overflowing bookcase

my favorite photo from Ashes and Snow

another ipod & speakers

5 Things you always wanted to do:

Travel around the world visiting all the spiritual sites on the planet.

Live in an ashram for a while

Hike the Grand Canyon….all the way down, and all the way back up

Lose 10 pounds……….

Write a book (or 2, or 3, or………..)

5 Things you’re currently into:

Cleaning up my hard drives!

Reading fiction and catching up with all my favorite authors.

Re-organizing my life to make room for grandchildren!

Expanding my teaching to new places & to new people

Learning new music on my harp

5 people you want to tag……..hmmm, this is a hard one! Please forgive the blogs that are not wordpress!

http://opalescentwords.wordpress.com/

http://constantstateofflux.wordpress.com/

http://pisces-chronicles.blogspot.com/

http://sahajapower.wordpress.com/

http://raginguniverse.blogspot.com/

Hmmm. Looking over my responses I appear quite boring. Oh well…… what can I say when I’m feeling like I have nothing to say!

Sun’s out……time to bask and practice doing nothing for while.

Om shanti.

The yoga of communication….

For years now I have been opening yoga class with a “check-in”. It’s an opportunity for those who choose, to speak without fear of feedback. It can be a difficult practice and not everyone participates, nor does everyone understand the benefits or meaning of the practice.

I will be turning over my yoga classes to my assistants when I travel later this month. We’ve been having ‘training’ sessions to cover as much as we can before I leave. “Holding the space” for a deep-listening practice can be extremely challenging. And, yet, I want the studio to remain constant and safe for those who attend in my absence.

Over the years of working with deep listening techniques, conscious communication, and silence I have learned a lot. It’s my intention to get it all down in the manual I’m writing for yoga teachers/therapists.

For today, I’d like to call your attention to some words that are best eliminated from your everyday dialogue. They are powerless and ineffective. Nothing of importance gets communicated if these words are in your sentences. And, for now, you’ll just have to take my word for it and do your own research. Let me know what you find. Here’s the list.

COULD

WOULD

SHOULD

BUT

NEVER

ALWAYS

NOT (or any word that has a n’t attached to it)

It’s a short list. However, if you begin to really listen to yourself you will probably find it quite difficult to eliminate these words.

The moon’s in Gemini today….the impulse to connect thru language presents itself. The mental field is active and the communication channels are active.

There’s a lot going on………..

….around the cosmos these days. The recent new moon has jumpstarted the energy that was forecast by the recent equinox/full moon. This lunar month promises to keep things stirred up for a while.

Meanwhile, much further away than the moon, on April 4 Eris moved to 21AR01′58″, a mile-marker for this distant planetoid. The Sabian Symbol for this degree reads: THE GATE TO THE GARDEN OF ALL FULFILLED DESIRES. The keynote says: Abundance made possible by human together-ness and cooperation. Eris will remain in this degree until November, 2008…which, interestingly, coincides with the next shift of the Mayan Calendar, the beginning of Day Six.

Given all that I’ve been following with spinning planets, ancient calendars, and A New Earth birthing, it’s become increasingly important to continue with my yoga practice. How else can we possibly integrate all that is happening? Being Here and Now feels good and removes the stress of multiple possibilities in a changing world.

Early this morning I read Barbara Hand Clow’s New Moon horoscope which was the inspiration for this post. Below is a small part of her article (including the link so you can read all of it).

From the perspective of the Mayan Calendar and astrology, we are in the darkest days of Night Five, and I feel like I am seeing the probabilities very clearly. With this New Moon in Aries, we enter the most critical phase of the Galactic Underworld since it began in 1999-a phase I label “evolutionary bifurcation.” Using Chaos Theory (an advanced math system examining the way natural systems change and evolve), a bifurcation happens when an old evolutionary pattern is collapsing while a new wave is building. During great evolutionary shifts, mature species are no longer able to adapt to changing conditions, such as the extinction of the dinosaurs when placental mammals emerged 63 million years ago. With the breaking point-the bifurcation-evolution continues through new species while the old ones die off. This is always a very dangerous moment for any creature that wants to survive. As humans, if we are to survive, we must move to a more cosmic level and re-enter the universe. We need to consciously flow with the new wave while keeping ourselves free from the collapsing systems.

http://www.handclow2012.com/astroflash.htm#New%20Moon

When you look at all of the astrological aspects within the context of the Mayan Calendar it all makes perfect sense. I am reminded of the Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times.”

It’s getting very interesting.

On a personal note, I’ve entered the balsamic phase of my personal lunar cycle. Phew. Resting will feel good today.

Om Nimah Shavaya.

The Learning Curve

What I love about blogging is that I have had to learn new skills in order to produce something that pleases me.  I am fussy.  Today I added vodpod to this site.  If you look over to the sidebar (you might have to scroll down a bit) you’ll find a few video’s that I thought were worth sharing.  Personally, I don’t really care to sit in front of my computer watching video.  I’d rather be on my comfy couch.  The written word remains my entertainment-of-choice.  Nevertheless, check out my video choices and feel free to comment.

Have a nice day.

Om shanti.

Rule #1 for Performance………

1. Never try something you haven’t practiced when in front of an audience.

We had our harp gig last night. Six of us (4 harps, 2 flutes) in a beautiful church by the sea. One of the other harpists suggested we cover the carpet with a white sheet that she brought. It will help us see the strings better. (Seeing your strings when playing the harp can be challenging depending on the floor. Patterned rugs (think: oriental) are the worst.) I really didn’t think it would help, I was comfortable with the blue carpet. However, I went along with the group……something that is quite customary for me.

I couldn’t see my strings! It was sheer luck if I got the right note! Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. All that practice………………….oh woe.

Most harpers (harpists…I still don’t know the difference) position their hands so that their fingers find the strings by feel. I can do that too. But not for the tunes we were playing last night. I was carrying the bass lines of the music which required left-hand arpeggio’s and my eyes! Oh well.

They say we learn best by our mistakes.

Once again, I’ve learned to say, “No, thanks”…….no white sheet for me.